Christmas Portuguese Queen Cake Recipe – Bolo Rainha

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A favorite from our European team is this healthy twist on a Portuguese Christmas classic – the Bolo Rainha. Packed with almonds, walnuts and pine nuts for a delicious crunch and shiny sultanas, this cake is sure to take center stage in your Christmas spread this year.

If you’re looking for a Christmas cake alternative that’s alcohol-free and takes a tenth of the time, then the Portuguese Queen Cake is certainly going to leave your guests satisfied this season.

Serves 16

Ingredients

500g flour

20g instant yeast

100ml warm milk

100g coconut sugar

100g coconut oil

3 whole eggs

1 egg yolk

Orange zest

Handful of almonds

Handful of walnuts

Handful of pine nuts

Handful of sultanas

Icing sugar

Method

1. First, dissolve the yeast in the warm milk and leave for 10 minutes.

2. Then in a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, eggs, coconut oil and orange zest, then work in the yeast mixture.

3. Knead the mixture well, until you get a consistent dough. Then add the nuts and sultanas, working them into the dough so that they’re spread evenly throughout.

4. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and leave the dough to rise until doubled in size (about 2 hours).

5. After the necessary time is up, shape the dough into a ring, place on a baking tray and brush with egg yolk, then bake for 30 minutes at 180°C.

6. Let rest for 10-15 minutes once out of the oven, dust with icing sugar, then slice and serve!

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Evangeline has taken part in competitive sports since a young age. As a qualified RYA Dinghy Instructor, she understands the importance of proper nutrition for fuelling extreme and endurance sports, especially due to her experience in Team GBR Squads and captaining and coaching her University first team.
In her spare time, Evangeline loves running – especially marathons. On the weekends, you’ll find her taking on water sports or hiking up a hill. Her favourite evenings are spent taking on a HIIT session or squats in the gym before digging into some spicy food and a ton of vegetables – yum!